“The demand for happiness and the patient quest for it” isn’t a luxury or a mere need but our existential duty. ~ Albert Camus ~

The “Carlsbad Caverns”… One of “Mother Nature’s” most grandiose undertaking. Just a few miles away.

I have always maintained that the aspects facing us throughout our Life demands us to be responsible towards ourselves in more ways than one. How many times have we heard as within a relationship for example “I need you to make me … I need you…”. Fill in the blank! Physically first at best as we can throughout our food consumption, exercise with the present abilities of our vehicle “our body” including our hygiene, and mentally keeping a true awareness unlike only skimming the surface of our journey, while such awareness must be comprised of honest and true to form values. It is a mouthful! Isn’t? It sounds hard but it is not. I personally don’t feel as it is.

The values! That one is a long list. Core values are the guiding principlesof our life that helps us determine our behavior, words, and actions. I don’t think most of us are even remotely aware how long the list is. Upbringing, schooling, engrained genes and positive directions taken, falling on our face more than once for sure, hopefully can make us check out each box. Fortunate the ones that can. It is not offered on a silver platter. It is the fruit of our directional path taking years to achieve.

It is a “phenomenon” which arises these days, the culprit of its stage being the years passed. Yes, back to that word! The excuses to confront and instead make a right or a left or even for that matter a U turn are always of so many. I have used them at times myself. I am as guilty as the next person sitting next to me. As “Albert Camus” said so well within his timeless philosophical pages published throughout the past century,

“In a world whose absurdity appears to be so impenetrable, we simply must reach a greater degree of understanding among men, women, a greater sincerity.”

We owe to ourselves to wear and experience this Life worthy of Living regardless of its adversities. “One Life… One Chance…”. We owe ourselves to be filled with “happiness” and lets add to it “Peace”. Should I write this list for myself as a constant reminder? Should I plaster it on my walls? I wonder. It has become more important than ever. As having had to give up physical entities, as again my thoughts converse with myself bringing up the fact that I have much less to live than I have lived, there is certain pride towards these days to feel that I have indeed achieved some “good” in life, something “worthy” of existence and not just the banal nine to five round trip to the office, the evenings passed plumped in front a giant screen going through a twelve pack, the weekends entertaining the neighbors in the backyard amongst the smoke of hamburgers and hot dogs grilling, loudly overtaken by nuts and bolts and weather talks…

Who would have ever guessed there would be over 400 values to take stock of, on hopefully regular basis while having the task to make the necessary changes aligning our life with the most important ones. I have to live in harmony with those values, I feel as it is the only possibility to create a fertile environment for happiness, peace of mind and a personal success, emphasize on “personal” and not as a “Social Media Star” as so many only brightened by the screen of their computers aspire, as then maybe I can live authentically without confusion, guilt or shame.

Sometimes as this morning, I wonder why I write “this”, these pages. A deep question I often ask myself and yet, honestly, pretty much know the answer. They keep me within the yellow lines of this road which is never a straight one as its hairpin turns are often a surprise facing me. I cannot, as they say “be asleep at the wheel”!